Dwight McNeil: The League's Most Underrated Player

Before the season abruptly stopped due to the pandemic Dwight McNeil was having an incredible start to life in the prem. This season alone he has started all 29 games for ‘the clarets’ racking up 2534 minutes in the process; He was only behind Declan Rice & Trent AA in terms of the most minutes played for a player under the age of 21.

The 20 year old has already amassed 51 premiership appearances to his name and with Burnley currently having the 3rd oldest squad in the league with an average age of 29.2 you can already see the trust Sean Dyche has in his young midfielder and there is a reason why.

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McNeil prominently takes up the role of a left midfielder in a 4-4-2. In this position of the pitch he is able to showcase his ability to take on defenders and drive forward with his incredible dribbling skills. McNeil this season has successfully completed 61 take ons, which is the most take ons completed by anyone under the age of 21 in the prem this season and ranked 9th overall.

Out on the left flank McNeil is also able to execute his superb crossing ability, which has been a pivotal weapon for Burnley this year. Burnley’s number 11 has been able to cross the ball 193 times this season which is 2nd in the most crosses performed by a player under the age of 21 behind the Liverpools crossing maestro Trent AA, he also sits 6th in the league overall.

Due to his fantastic crossing & dribbling ability, McNeil has created 11 ‘big chances’ and 5 assists this season that's on top of the 2 stunning outside the box left footed goals against Chelsea & Bournemouth.

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However it's not McNeils attacking ability which is why Dyche has trusted him to start every league game this season but it's his combination of being able to attack and defend. To play for Burnley and to play under Sean Dyche you must be selfless and work for the team; as much as you want to attack you must be able to defend and McNeil is evidence of this.

He ranks 2nd in the league for the amount of tackles & interceptions for a forward player, which is no coincidence to why Burnley have been able to keep the 2nd most clean sheets in the premiership this season behind the inevitable champions Liverpool.

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McNeil is not blessed with a blistering pace unlike many of the players who play in the wide positions, which is maybe a reason why he has not had a lot of attention from big clubs.

If McNeil is to make the next step with a move to a ‘top 6’ team then he might have to change position. Looking at McNeil attributes and lack of speed maybe a more central role on the left of a midfield 3 like Wijnaldum has done when he moved from Newcastle to Liverpool would suit him. This will still allow him to drive forward with his dribbling capabilities and it will allow him to drift into pockets where he can still get his dangerous crosses into the box which means that someone who has more pace can utilise and exploit the wide areas more.

McNeil is not by any means a finished article however he has made great strides to have a successful career in the premiership and

we can all agree that with Burnley sitting 10th in the league and currently only 6 points behind 5th placed Manchester United, McNeil will be vital in Burnley’s quest to beat their highest league finish of 7th when the league resumes.